Television: Monsters (1990)
One of the positive revelations I discovered while inhabiting new characters was the use of an Asian accent. I found that when using an accent I didn’t have any speech issues with words or lines no matter how involved the role. I guess psychologically it wasn’t me playing this role but another actor who spoke differently than I did. And because the industry does a good job of stereotyping Asian actors I was able to land a good number of jobs where I was able to hide behind an accent. My character, Lt. Heng, has multiple scenes and extensive dialogue and because my speech was free and clear I really enjoyed working on this episode. Plus I got to play opposite Ahmad Rashad, the former All-Pro wide receiver with the Minnesota Vikings! Woo Hoo!!
Also, an incident happened with me while shooting that highlighted the intersection of a childhood imagination and the imagination of television. I’m in a scene where I’m attacked by Zombie like characters and killed. The set-up is that I hang back in the tunnels to protect two colleagues as we try to escape and I have to mime shooting at approaching monsters and then I ultimately get attacked from behind and my throat slit. The sound of gunfire, muzzle flashes and shrieking of monsters will be added in post production. The scene is set and locked down, the smoke machines and fans start, my pistol cocked and at ready, the Director yells, “Action!” I step into frame, hit my mark, spot the first monster and then I start blasting away. First one monster, then a second monster, then… Cut! Cut! Cut!, the Director yells. I’m thinking what happened? I look over and the crew are all laughing hysterically, the Director is almost doubled over. I said, “What happened?” He said, “What are you doing?! You can’t make shooting sounds! This is not Cowboys and Indians!” As a kid growing up some of my best play memories were as a cowboy hero picking off Indians circling the wagons. After the scene was finished the Director walked over and asked, “John Wayne?” I said, “Jimmy Stewart”.
